What is a Nor'easter?

So, I was scanning my 5th favorite website, http://www.weathers.com/, and came across a system called the Nor'easter.  I thought to myself, what in the world is that?  Supposedly, according to Wikipedia (my 3rd favorite website), the Nor'easter is a macro scale storm system along the east coast of the United States. This storm can cause major flooding, hurricane type force winds and heavy rain or snow.  On Thursday night, the east coast would feel the impact of the Nor'easter storm which will bring 40 to 50 mile per hour winds.  Meterologists expect that the strong gust of winds will topple trees and knock out power to thousands of eastern American citizens.  It is reported that rain can average levels of up to 1-2 inches, although higher amounts of water is not uncommon.  Usually, after this storm flows through the east coast cool cold weather comes in from England accompanied by snow (Christmas time already!). 



The storm system will cause a lot of headaches for those that are traveling.  Those traveling through by plane will experience heavy delays or even cancellations due to the fact that the winds are so strong it may cause planes to crash.  Heavy traffic congestion is also expected on highways and interstates too. Coming from a relatively large city (New Orleans), I know it must be hell going through these traffic congestions.  I could remember it would take me 2 1/2 hours to get home from the French Quarter.  Just imagine how long it would take these guys to get home. I love rain and snow just as much as the next guy but just being in heavy traffic and add the strong gust of winds is one of the main reasons I can not see myself living along the northern east coast. I love my southern states a lot more.

Crazy Weather hits Arizona

http://www.weather.com/outlook/videos/iwitness-amazing-video-of-hail-storm-18431

A wicked hail storm moved over the Phoenix/Glendale area in Arizona on Tuesday.  It was reported that golf sized hail was pelting Phoenix for a good 5 minutes.  Not only did central Arizona get hit with a hail storm but northern Arizona became a haven for tornadoes, which is not common in the state of Arizona.  According to a report on cnn.com, it was said that temperatures
dramatically dropped from the mid 80's to the 50's. By looking at the video I felt really concerned about the citizens within the central Arizona area. Imagine being caught in a hail storm such as the one displayed in the video.  While I witnessed the video showed in my blog, I couldn't help but wonder about many of those that had cut rate insurance such as the Allstate commercials and the so called "mayhem". The hail caused a tremendous amount of damage which could turn a nice looking car into junk.  In another video which failed to upload on this blog showed the aftermath of the hail storm.  Fog began to rise due to the evaporation of the ice crystals and created an eerie scene. It was a scene seen on a Nightmare on Elm Street movie. As for the tornadoes in the Flagstaff area, there were no reported injuries or deaths but many citizens were left homeless due to the damage the storm caused.  Thankfully, the tornado did not cause much damage as we all know how damaging a storm system such as this can be. On, Tuesday I traveled to San Diego for a seminar and the storm system that  I witnessed over the mountain tops were both beautiful but at the same time scary.  The temperature changed about 20 degrees as we neared the low pressure system.  But I must say it felt great to be in a cooler temp than what we were experiencing in Yuma at that time.

More Flooding

More flooding this week has presented problems for the United States however in a different region.  The eastern region of the US has face constant downpour enabling cars to be engulfed by high waters, as shown in picture above.  The downpour is in relation to Tropical Storm Nicole which may bring flooding throughout the eastern coast from the Carolinas to Maine.  It was just reported today that not only will people within the region have to worry about flood water but now there is a high wind advisory all along the Atlantic coast. 

As you can see it is a major front infiltrating the Atlantic coast with low pressure and bringing lots of rain with it.  Someday maybe Yuma, AZ can get rain like this again.  I remember back in 2005, my first year here in Arizona, I experienced what was called monsoon season and it was raining practically everyday during one month.  I have yet to experience anything like that again.  Of course it'll rain every now then but they are just teasers. My first son was born in 2008 and he'd never experience rain at all until he was almost two.  The family took a little trip to visit grandpa and grandma in Spring, Texas, which is a subdivision of Houston.  The visit was in the month of August, which for anyone familiar with weather it was hurricane season.  It poured the entire time we were there and there was a Hurricane that was heading our way, which actually caused damage to downtown Houston and major roof damage to Reliant Stadium.  Since, my son hadn't ever seen rain or even knew of the word, he would and was very scared especially during the lightning storm.  My parents house overlooks a lake so it is quite funny when something we (as adults) think is beautiful or just WOW someone as is petrified or terrified of the same situation.

Unexpected Flooding

Floods across the Midwest are causing havocs for those that live throughout the region.  Record amounts of rain drenched the region with amounts of up to 11 inches.  The rain has closed roads and has caused one city mayor to call for a state of emergency.  The downpour has caused rivers and streams to overfill causing added headaches to citizens affected by the floods.  Reports indicate that although rain showers have stopped there is a strong low pressure frontal system pushing its way to the upper Midwest area.

I guess not only are Minnesota Viking fans dealing with a 0-2 record but now they must deal with these unforgiving weather conditions.  Okay, that was a joke I had to throw in there but on a serious note, I hope all those within the region can overcome the adversity the flash floods have placed upon those citizens.  I can remember back in the 80's, when I lived in New Orleans, we experienced my first flooding.  Streets were flooded and impassable.  To get somewhere many New Orleanians would paddle their way in personally owned boats. I thought it was cool back then but now since I have responsibilities it would not be so funny if one did not have flood insurance. Floods cause major damage to cars and homes and without flood insurance, the expense of paying out of pocket can cause a financial strain. Although Yuma rarely receives rain, the area I live in floods from time to time.  When I was presented with flood insurance, I did not hesitate to make sure my family and I are protected from the wrath of torrential downpours.  Personally in my own opinion, floods are more dangerous than a hurricane. Some times you can wait out the effects of a hurricane but when a flood comes into town you have to evacuate.  Article and pictures courtesy of http://www.weather.com/outlook/weather-news/news/articles/flooding-midwest-thursday_2010-09-23?page=2.

More Hurricanes

Hurricane Karl has strengthened in the Gulf of Mexico posing an imminent threat to the citizens of Mexico (good luck Cancun).  While in the Atlantic Ocean, Hurricane Julia seems to have joined forces with Hurricane Igor creating a tag team duel, just like Starsky and Hutch. Hurricane Igor seems like it is on a mission for Haiti, Cuba and quite possibly the Florida Keys.  Of the three storms, Hurricane Igor is the strongest as a Category 4 and depending on its movement the storm may become a dangerous Category 5 but only time will tell.  As for Hurricane Julia, which is the youngest of the three, she does not look like she is of danger to the United States or islands within the Gulf of Mexico.

Here's an awesome photo taken from space of Hurricane Igor. Hurricanes, from a photo standpoint, are an amazing spectacle to observe but are very dangerous for all in its path. Hurricanes, even when weakened to a tropical storm when it makes landfall, can drop a tremendous amount of rain and produce winds knocking over 100 to 200 year old oak trees.  Damages from these storms can range in the upper millions. I hope and pray that those who are within a hurricane zone have their emergency kits available and have an escape route.  I am originally from New Orleans and one of the reasons why I am in Arizona (although I miss my home food so very much) is because of the hassle of dealing with tropical storms and hurricanes.  Each region within the United States has their own weather situation but Yuma, Arizona seems to have minimal weather threats.  So from a "keep your family safe standpoint", this guy made a great choice.  My references were taken from: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100914/ts_alt_afp/atlanticusweatherstorm_20100914153458

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100916/sc_afp/mexicoatlanticusweatherstormstrength

Tropical Storm Hermine

According to http://weather.yahoo.com, the death toll from Tropical Storm Hermine has climbed to 6. Hermine caused a lot of flooding through much of the southern Midwest states. San Antonio reached record numbers for rainfall during this time of year. My parents who reside in Spring, Texas, which is a suburb of Houston, said there satellite dish was struck by lightning and the storm blew out one of their televisions. The lake behind their home was rising at an alarming rate, but the water technicians for the subdivision were able to drain most of it before the water became a problem. When I lived in Killeen, Texas, we had several storms that would bring tremendous amount of rain and lightning our way. Tornadoes were also a common occurrence. I use to hate and love when it would flood. I loved it because work was normally cancelled and I use to hate it because I always had damage either to my vehicle or my house.

Hurricane season

Hurricane Earl is bound to make landfall sometime early Saturday morning.  It is currently riding up the eastern side of the United States. Being originally from the great state of Louisiana, several stories pop up in my mind of what my family has gone through. I personally did not feel the wrath of Katrina but had several family members that did and are still trying to recover. But, I did witness Hurricane Andrew in the fall of 1992.  My father who worked with Exxon (now known as ExxonMobil) gave us a heads up on the storm before any of the forecasters could.  Since, he flew out to oil rigs often, he had to know the weather details. The ironic thing about the situation was the fact that we knew way in advance but didn't try to evacuate until I believe a day prior till it made landfall in Louisiana.  I can remember us being stuck in traffic for hours on the hurricane evacuation route which basically was along I-10. I can also remember that we wasted a lot of gas that day. First, we were heading north towards Baton Rouge but since the traffic was so thick we decided to head east towards Biloxi. My dad was trying to out play the hurricane. If I could recall I believe Andrew stayed stationary for a bit in the gulf which made my dad change his mind. My dad did not know what path the storm was going to take and meterologist gave an extensive path for Andrew that ranged from the Florida panhandle all the way to Texas. So, my dad just decided to drive the family back New Orleans and rent a hotel for the duration of the storm. We decided to get a room near the top floor since we knew about the levy problems since 80's but Louisiana never did anything about it until it was too late with Katrina. Anyhow, that night was a crazy one even though the storm did not hit New Orleans directly we still felt a little of Andrews impact.  Hurricane Andrew ended making landfall close to Morgan City, Louisiana and I can remember looking out over the Superdome and seeing lightning and the electricity shut off.

After the storm passed and left the state of Louisiana and towards Mississippi, we decided to go home to scope out the damage.  Hurricane Andrew managed to knock down 2 very old magnolia trees and a couple of other minor mishaps, but the one thing my dad did not want destroyed was.  His fishing boat, in which he and his buddies had just finished 3 months prior, was now gone.  His boat cost approxiamately $16,000 to build but thank goodness for insurance.  After Hurricane Andrew, my dad decided to take a job opening with Exxon in Santa Barbara, California. He did this for 2 reasons and they were: 1) to not worry about the danger of hurricanes and 2) so his children can have an opportunity to enjoy the state of California for the first time. Everything was going swell until 1994 when an earthquake shook up southern California. My mom went crazy and told my dad she would much rather live through a hurricane because you have time to prepare than go through another earthquake. So, we moved back to Louisiana a year later.